DENVER — The 2020 MLB season is coming fast.
“I was thinking about this the other day, we leave in less than 10-days. That’s just mind-blowing," said Rockies pitcher Jon Gray.
Opening Day is closing fast. For Gray, the start of the season will be a leap of faith.
“It definitely does take some faith, because this is (going to be) one of those years that I have to lean on a lot of experience to kind of, I don’t know. It's going to be different in a way but then again I’ll have to lean on my experience of doing it, and doing it, and doing it again," said Gray.
The right-handed pitcher hasn’t gotten a lot of work at Rockies Summer Camp, but he’s had command of his secondary pitches. Velocity with the fastball remains a work in progress.
“Yeah, I would like to average around 96-97 miles per hour, and use it up in the zone a little more. But I think that once someone gets in the box that I don’t like, I think it will be there," said Gray.
He’s also drawing from the disappointment of 2019. A year the Rockies pitching staff didn’t deliver. As elder statesman, Gray believes the young rotation will bounce back.
“We have high expectations of ourselves, and I think that’s a really good thing. If we didn’t that would be kind of scary. Its good to know that. And good to know we have guys that are hungry and ready to win," said Gray.
With camp coming to an end, the 28-year-old feels good about where the Rockies stand collectively.
“With what I’ve seen from camp the last couple of weeks it's been really, really, really good. Like I’m really excited. We’re in a good place compared to other teams. Some other teams have had trouble, but we’re right on pace”, said Gray with a smile.